Grow your skills . . .

. . . in our exciting and diverse new lineup of Enrichment Series Workshops .

Our Enrichment Series Workshops make it easy and convenient for you to keep learning after our full semester classes end for the summer in June. Each workshop is a four-hour, one-time class that addresses a single topic, which you will be guided in exploring in depth. Most of our Enrichment Series Workshops are technique-oriented and available to students of all levels . Whether you are a beginner or an experienced ceramic artist, you'll find the techniques taught in our Enrichment Series Workshops inspiring and valuable. Boot Camp for Throwers With Kay Yourist Friday, June 28, 10 am-2 pm Practice, practice, practice to develop centering muscle memory. Sgraffito Surface Design With Darcy Bowden Friday, July 12, 10 am-2 pm Expand your surface decoration options with sgraffito and slip. Paper, Scissors, Slip With Nancy Bulkley Saturday, July 13, 10 am-2 pm Cut out paper designs and transfer your cutout images with slip. Marbled Clay Creations With David Timm Sunday, July 14, 10 am-2 pm Mix different colored clays to create random patterns in your pieces. Drawing Crash Course With Darcy Bowden Wednesday, July 24, 10 am-2 pm Add drawing to your surface design options. Peruvian Paddling Method With Kate Tremel Friday, July 26, 10 am-2 pm Make pottery the traditional Peruvian way with a paddle and anvil. Learn more and enroll here.

And there's more You still have time to sign up for these six-week classes: Introductory and Continuing Wheel Sundays Sun, June 2-July 7, 1:30-3:30 pm, with David Timm. Coffee and Clay Wed, June 5-July 17, 10 am-12 pm, with Nancy Bulkley. You can also try your hand at throwing on the wheel in June. Try It Once on the Wheel Sat, June 8, 1:00-2:30 pm, with Nancy Bulkley Register here.

All in the family

Our current show, In the Garden: Pottery Inspired by Nature , introduces two new ceramic artists: mom Cindy Fink , a landscape architect by profession, and daughter Erica Kane Fink , an artist and designer. We asked them what inspires their work.

Cindy Fink "My inspiration comes from many sources: ancient Greek pottery, old American Indian pottery, and ancient South African forms, to which I like to add a little modern twist. I attempt to keep my work "of the earth." It makes my heart sing when a form looks like it is still of the earth. With a background in geology and landscapes, I love getting my hands in dirt, in soil, and in clay, pulling out forms."

Erica Kane Fink "I draw inspiration from the idea that handmade items make for a more meaningful life. I am interested in images and symbols that reflect daily habits, domestic routines, and the objects we surround ourselves with. Bold patterns and colors play a big role in cloaking my work with an unexpected and re-imagined flair."

Come see Cindy's earthy vessels, Erica's lively jewelry and wall hangings, and all the other beautiful ceramic art on display in our current show , through June 30.

Studio life

Extruding coils in class Here's the Saturday morning Hand Building class using the studio extruder to make coils. The extruder can be used to create forms in a number of different shapes and sizes. You choose the die for the shape you want, attach it to the extruder barrel, pack the barrel of the extruder with clay, then turn the big wheel. Extruding is a two-person job: one person to turn the wheel and another to catch the extruded form. And, of course, there's the cleanup afterwards.

The big squeeze We need to free up our overflowing bisqueware shelves. If you have bisqueware from May on our shelves, please come glaze it for firing or collect it and take it home by June 30 . Sadly, we must discard any unclaimed bisqueware remaining after that date.

Pay attention to tools After wiping down your wood and drywall ware boards, be sure to sponge off all the studio tools you've used, including rolling pins, banding wheels, molds, and so on . And don't forget to rinse your sponges thoroughly.

Keeping our studio clean and healthy requires more than a lick and a promise. Do your part by washing clay from every surface before it has a chance to dry and go airborne.

Ready, load, fire Here's our tentative schedule for the June gas kiln firing. It's time to get your work glazed and ready to go! Loading : Monday, June 10 Firing : Wednesday, June 12 Keep in mind that this schedule could change depending on the supply of pieces available for firing. Be sure to check with the studio for firing schedule updates.

Tool Time: Altering a thrown shape Want to make pots in shapes other than round? Learn from Kay how to throw a bottomless pot and alter its shape in our next Tool Time demonstration on Saturday, June 15, at 3:30 pm . Drop by the studio to see this demonstration, which is free and open to the public .  I f you have topics you'd like Kay to cover in her free Tool Time demonstrations, please let us know . We're interested in hearing from you.

Potter's quick tip

Q. When I try to apply texture to my thrown pots with a paddle, I always end up slapping my pots out of shape. How can I avoid distorting my pots?  A . After working on this paddling problem for a while, Bill van Gilder came up with a solution that gives him the Japanese stamped effect he admires. This video shows how and when he applies the paddle to get a deep impression on his pots without distortion. Follow Bill van Gilder here.

Clay lover's events calendar

In the Garden: Pottery Inspired by Nature Yourist Studio Gallery

Exhibitions Darcy R. Bowden: Shape Shifting: Surface and Form in Clay . Now-June 7, 2019. Gifts of Art Gallery, Taubman Health Center. More... Rezgar Mamandi: Manna Pottery . Now - June 7, 2019. Gifts of Art Gallery, Taubman Health Center. More... In the Garden: Pottery Inspired by Nature . Now-June 30. Yourist Studio Gallery. More... Butter . Now–August 25, 2019. Third Biennial National Juried Exhibition presented by the International Museum of Dinnerware Design. Museum on Main Street. More...

Workshops, sales, and more Ann Arbor Potters Guild Spring Sale . June 1-2, 2019. 301 Hill. More... Ann Arbor Art Fair . Thursday, July 18-Sunday, July 21, 2019. More... RnR Ceramics Workshop With Martha Grover and Sarah Pike . September 30-October 4, Trust Art Studios, Ann Arbor. More... National Clay Week: A Celebration of Clay in All Its Forms . October 7-13, 2019. More... MCAA Michigan Mud With Julia Galloway . October 19, 2019. Oakland Community College. More...

Resources for potters

Need a template?

Could you use a template for a piece you are hand building? Check out the free Template maker site , which offers downloadable, custom templates for almost any shape you can think of. The templates are designed for paper crafts and box making but can easily be adapted for clay. Thanks to Caron Valentine-Marsh for sharing this great resource.

Throwing bubbles

There's lots more to ceramics than making functional ware. Witness Swedish ceramist Eva Zethraeus creating one of her remarkable porcelain bubble cluster sculptures. You can see more of her pieces here . Thanks to Joanne Daniels for this fascinating find.

Yourist Studio Gallery 1133 Broadway Ann Arbor, MI 48105 734-662-4914 | www.youristpottery.com •Classes and workshops •Community studio workspace •Pottery tools for sale •Exhibit gallery